Related Federal Cases
- Regina Berny, Bank Fraud and Wire Fraud, California 2017 · California
- Adams Amen, Wire Fraud Conspiracy, New York 2018 · New York
- Hubbard Bell, Wire Fraud Conspiracy, Texas 2024 · Texas
- Mattek Scott, Wire Fraud Conspiracy, Rhode Island 2024 · Pennsylvania
- Mattek Scott, Wire Fraud Conspiracy, Rhode Island 2024 · Pennsylvania
Defendant Sentenced for Operating Refunding Fraud Ring
A 29-year-old Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania man was sentenced to 30 months in prison for wire fraud and money laundering crimes related to his operation of a fraudulent online shopping refund scheme.
Leonardo Vidal, 29, was sentenced on April 7, 2024 by U.S. District Judge Robert S. Lasnik in Seattle. Vidal was ordered to be on three years of supervised release following prison. The sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman.
Vidal operated his own fraudulent refunding fraud scheme from June 2021 until April 2023 called Ressu Refunds, which amassed 2,800 subscribers and obtained $6 million in fraudulent refunds for followers. He conspired with a 25-year-old Dearborn, Michigan, man, Sajed Al-Maarej, who operated a different refund site called “Simple Refunds.”
The Telegram channels represented to prospective purchasers that they could buy high value goods and keep them, while falsely claiming to the merchant company that a refund was due. Purchasers provided Al-Maarej and Vidal with information about their purchase (order number, name, address, value). For a cut of the refund, Al-Maarej, Vidal and their coconspirators would seek a refund by making false representations to the retailers about the status of the order.
In total, the fraudulent refunds through Simple Refunds and Ressu Refunds while Vidal was running them is $6,067,168. Vidal agreed to pay restitution of that amount.
Vidal recruited “insiders” at UPS and the US Postal Service who would input false scans into the order tracking history to make it appear items had been lost in shipping, stolen from the mail, or returned to the company.
“Those running these refunding schemes induced others to essentially steal and cheat while claiming there would be no consequences,” said U.S. Attorney Gorman. “These prison sentences are appropriate for the damage done to retailers and to our community in promoting these illegal schemes.”
Key Facts
- State: Washington
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
ðŸâ€Â’ Get the grimiest stories delivered weekly. Subscribe free →
